“Meeting With Centre Tomorrow, Won’t Push Forward Until Then”: Farmers

The Union government will hold a meeting with farmers in Chandigarh on Thursday and the protestors will remain peaceful and not try to push their way through the barricades and other barriers at various borders until then, a farmer leader has said. 

Speaking after a meeting with senior police officers in Chandigarh on Wednesday, farmer leader Sarwan Singh Pandher said Union Agriculture Minister Arjun Munda and two other Union Ministers, Piyush Goyal and Nityanand Rai, will meet representatives of the protesting farmers in the city at 5 pm on Thursday.  Mr Goyal holds the Food and Public Distribution portfolio and Mr Rai is Minister of State for Home. 

“Based on a message we got last night and Union Minister Anurag Thakur’s call for dialogue, we spoke to everyone in the movement and decided that we would remain peaceful today and not try and push further from where we were. A meeting has been called for 5 pm tomorrow and we will continue our peaceful protest. No action will be taken from our side until then,” said Mr Pandher. 

The farmer leader alleged, however, that even though they held a peaceful protest on Wednesday, drones were used and tear gas shells and rubber pellets were fired at them. “It wasn’t the police, but paramilitary forces that were attacking us. Despite all this, we are ready to speak to the Union government.”

Earlier on Wednesday, Agriculture Minister Arjun Munda had called for dialogue and urged the farmers not to do anything that inconveniences common people. 

“We should keep in mind all aspects and discuss this. The farmers need to ensure that normal life is not disrupted. I think no solution can be found by doing anything that causes inconvenience to the common man. Such actions only create hurdles in finding a solution. I urge them to maintain a conducive atmosphere for dialogue,” the minister said.